Welcome to Choong Hoon Institute.
You're invited to join us today on a practice that builds resilience.
A simple practice in the midst of difficulty and challenge.
Go ahead and find a comfortable seated position.
Bring the hands to the hips and make sure the hips are leveled.
Shimmy the hips from side to side.
Are they balanced?
Allow your spine to rock forward and back,
Finding a nice neutral position.
The shoulder blades rotate forward,
Up,
Back,
And down.
Allowing the heart to lift slightly,
The crown of the head reaches long.
You're tall.
Bring the hands to the thighs or knees,
Palms face down.
Take a deep breath in and let it go with a gentle sigh.
One more time.
You arrive to this present moment.
The eyes are closed or softened.
Begin to notice what's happening in your mind.
Something difficult perhaps arose.
Maybe you're in the midst of a challenge.
If that is the case,
Take another deep breath in.
You find yourself in the storm,
The hurricane of thoughts,
Emotions,
Feelings,
Sensations.
They feel overwhelming,
Overpowering,
I know.
We're in this together.
Take a deep breath in.
Let it go with a gentle sigh.
In the midst of the storm,
You recognize you're in a hurricane and you find the I.
The place in the center which does not move.
The place in the center where there is stillness.
The place in the center where there is calm.
Go to that place.
Go to the I of the storm.
The place of gentleness.
The place of ease.
Around you,
There will be chaos and it's okay.
For now,
You don't need to do anything.
Take a deep breath in and let it go with a gentle sigh one more time.
Allow yourself to rest in this I in the storm.
Allow yourself to be centered amidst all of the chaos,
All the fluctuations of the mind for just a moment.
Can you find calm?
Can you find peace?
Perhaps even a resonance of joy?
The storm around you,
It will pass.
Surely we have heard this all before.
But what causes the storm to pass?
Remain in that center.
Become calm.
Breathe and focus on your breath for a few moments.
That's all it takes.
Just breathe.
When your mind wanders and the storm catches you by surprise,
Guide yourself to the center,
To the I of the storm and breathe.
Perhaps you begin to notice as you focus on your breath more and more that the storm calms down.
Perhaps it even seizes or fades away.
You just focus on your breath.
Inhale.
Exhale.
Repeat.
A little rain comes and goes and you just focus on the breath as you sit in your center.
And as the mind calms,
A sense of clarity and understanding washes over you.
Suddenly,
The sun appears.
Bring your hands to your heart and take a moment.
Set your intention for the remainder of your day or night.
I will be calm and centered.
I will be calm and centered.
With calmness comes clarity.
With calmness,
There is awareness.
With calmness,
I am mindful.
Today,
I will be calm.
Calm in body,
Calm in speech,
And calm in mind.
Because today is the day.
I sit in the center.
In the I of the storm.
The hurricane that fades away.
And I land in the field of the rising sun.
Calmness,
Clarity,
And ease fill me.
